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RIBBONOR TAPE NEEDLE.

APPLICATION FILED'NOV. 21. I919.

1 351,418. PamnmaAug.31,1920.f

U TE SEATEQKS?" U wALTEno. nLLswonrH;orfnnw yon r, N.

RIBBON on TAPE NEEDLE.-

To all whom it may concern: 1 Be it known that I, WALTER O. ELLS- WORTH,a citizen of the United States, resid;

mg in the city of New York, county of New York, and St'ateofNew York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ribbon or TapeNeedlesyof which the following is a'full, clear, and exactClGSCIlPtiOIl.

This invention relates to ribbon or tape needles; that is to needlesfor. threading ribbon or tape through lace openwork narrow hems ofgarments and for similar uses.

The type of needle or bodkin commonly 7 used heretofore .forthe purposeabove indicated is provided with rather blunt ends and adjacent one ofthese ends is provided through which the tape a relatively large eye ornarrow ribbon. may be threaded.

order to use this type of needle, the desired piece of. ribbon or tapeis threaded through the eye of the needle andzthen the'needle. isinserted through the opening in the lace work or through the hem of agarment while the ribbon or; tape is pulled along by the needle. Thistypeof: needle orbodkin is open to the objection thatfit not only ismore or less diflicult to thread, but that it crushes and. creasesthe-"portion of ribbon drawn 7 through the. eye of the needleyand byfoldformed at this pointwhich. retards .ward movement of the bodkin.Furthering back the ribbon at the :eye abulk is the'formore thistypeofneedle often becomes ac cidentally unthre'aded while being used,

- The primary object which is annoying and wastes time.

of my invention is to provide a ribbonor free from the objections abovepointed out, more particularly the primary object of my invention is toprovidefpa ribbon or tape needle with conveniently. operable vmeans upononeendofthesam'e for firmly gripping an endof the tape or ribbon whichis to be threaded through agar'm'ent or the like.

Another object of my invention is to .pro.- vide a needle ofthe:type:QabQverrindicated with grippingjaws which may be opened toengage or release the tape by simply squeezing slightly an intermediateportion of the.

needle. I

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features andcombinations "of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a side view of a persons hand Specification of LettersPatent.

. Application filed. November 21,"1919 Serial No. 339,770.

tape needle which is and 5, and needle'are essary tion of the blades 10and 11, as shown in Fig.1, whereupon the abutments 18 and 19 showing myneedle held between the finger and thumb with an intermediate portionof.

the same a a Fig. "2 is an enlarged edge view of the needle'shown inFig.1. I Fig. 3 is a side viewof Fig. 2.

Patented Aug. 31", 1 920.

the needle compressed to" open the jaws, of 1 v Fig. 4' is' anenlarged-fend View the needle, as shownin Fig. 1, the teeth of needlebeing shown spaced apart. s

Fig. 5 1S a View 'similar'toFig. 3,but

.GQis a View similar toFig. 2,,but

showing aslight. modification of myiinvention.

The ribbon .or drawing is'preferably constructed ofa pair of relativelylong narrow resilient blades 10 and 11 firmly secured-together at theforward endof the needle, as indicated by 12;

the

- showing a tapeor ribbon held between. the I aws of the needlej and v Vw tape needle disclosed the The rear end-of each of-the blades 10 and 11arebent toward each other to form the jaws 13, :and 14:, and these jawsare preferably provided with the interengaging"saw-teeth 15 and '16, asshown in Fig. 4. gThef blades 10 and '11, which arepreferablyconstructed of resilient steel. operate to normally retain the jaws 13and 14 in gripping engagement jaws, as shown "in'FigB; the resiliency ofl with each other; so that after apiece of tape or ribbon 17 has beeninserted between, these theblaoles 10 and 11 will retain the jaws 13 andl 'in firm: gripping engagement with the ribbon or tape.

In order to provide means by which the',

jaws 13 and l l maybe convenientlyldisengaged from each other in orderthat a piece 7 orabutments are positioned opposite each other, and undernormal conditions lie'a'l very short being such that these abutmentswillnot in terfe're with the normal gripping operation distanceapart,,the arrangement of the jaws 13 and 14,. but when' it is desiredto separate these j aws, all that is necis to compress an intermediatepor- 'will be brought into engagement with each other and will serve asiulcrums about which the jaws 13 and 1 1 will swing away from eachother, as clearlyshown in Fig. 1. 'VVhile the jaws are held. open in themanner just pointed out, the ribbon or tape maybe easily insertedbetween the same, whereupon the pressure is removed from theintermediate portion of the blades, so that the parts may return totheir normal position. s

' The device shown in Fig. 6 (IllflGlS from the device shown in Figs; 1to inclusive,

only in that the blades 10- and 1 1' are shown as'constructed of oneintegral piece of metal with the parts bent back upon themselves at theforward end of the needle",

as indicated by 20, whereas in Figs. lrto 5 inclusive, the blades 10 and11 are made of separate pieces of steel, whichmay be secured together bysolder or by any other preferred means. p

i, From the above description when read in connection with the drawing,it will be seen that my'ribb'on or tape needle maybe very easilyattached to the ribbon or tape pre paratory to threading thesame'through the openings in a garment or piece ofclotlnand that whenthis needle is once engaged with a piece of ribbon or tape, it ispractically without departing from-the scope of my int vention asdefined 1n the annexed claims.

:l/Vhat I claim is:

1. A ribbon or tape needle consisting of V a pair of resilient bladessecuredtogether and provided with interengaging teeth being turned outof the "plane's of'the blades to'oppose each other and at one endot'sald needle, said teeth normally held in engage-- ment witheach'other by the resiliency: of

. said blades.

2; -A ribbon or tape needle consisting of a pair of resilient bladessecured together at one end 'and having an intermediate part spacedfromeach other, said blades proided with interengaging a-ws-at theoppo;

site end of said needle, and cooperating V abutmentsformedupon saidblades adjacent said jaws, said abutments constructed to v pressed.

. pressed toward each other.

serveas' fulcrums aboutwhic'h said jaws swing away from each other whenan .in-

termediate pressed- A 3.131 ribbon or tape needle consistingof a pairotresilient blades secured to each other with an intermediate portionthereof spaced apart, said blades provided with coportion' of saidneedle is comoperating teeth normally held in engagement with each otherby the resiliency of said blades, and means for separating" said teethcomprising inwardly extendingabut I ments positioned to engage eachother and tozserveas fulcrums about which said teeth 7 move away fromeachotherwhen theinterme'diate portion of said needle is coml. A tapeneedle consisting of a pair of resilient blades secured toeachotherwi't'h an intermediate portion thereof spaced apart, saidblades providedwith cooperating jaws, and means for forcing said jawsapart comprising abutting surfaces "between said blades positioned toengage eachother and 'to serve as fulcrnms about which said jawsmoveaway from eachother whenthe intermediate portion. of saidneedle iscompressed.

5. Afiribbon' or tape needle consisting'of a pair of substantiallyparallel resilient blades secured. together, each of said bladesprovided with tape engaging :teeth turned out of the planes'of.theblades to oppose each other and normally held in contact with eachother 'by 'the resiliency of said blades. e V

"6. A ribbon 0r tap'e needle consisting of a pair ofresilientblades:secured together and provided with tape-engaging partsnormally held in gripping engagement with each other by the resiliencyof said blades,

and a fulcrum positioned between "said 7 blades and constructcd'te'torcesaid tape engaging'fparts out of engagement with each otherWhQII'POItIODS of saidblades are 7. A tape needle, comprising twosubstan tlally parallel reslhent blades, havmg turned portions at theendslthereof, each of said turned portions being provided with teethfacing .the teeth of the other turned-pen.

tion, s aid teeth being normally-held in gripping: engagement by theresiliency of :the

blades.

In witness whereof, I have herennto set my hand-on the'lSth dayot-November, 1919.

VVALTER O. ELLSVVORTH.

